Tricycle



(No Model.)

0. HIESTER.

TRIGYOLB.

No. 271,583. Patented. Jan. 30, 1883;

w I W i Attorne N. PETERS. Hulu-Lilbogrwb". WIINI'IB'DIL n. c.

TATES CHARLES E. HIESTER, OF HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR ()NE THIRD TO CALVIN S. MIXTER, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

TRICYCLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 271,583, dated January 30, 1883.

Application filed December 16, 1882. (N model.) I

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. Hmsrnn, of Harrisburg, in the county of Dauphin and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tricycles; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon,

which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in tricycles in which the propelling-wheels are mounted on a straight axle, to which motion is imparted by spring driving-disks operated by pedals by means of flexible connections; and the objects of my improvements are, first, to obviate the necessity of moving the limbs to a height equal to the longitudinal axis of the crank in existing machines by providing a straight axle which is capable of rotation by a slight perpendicular motion of the feet; second, to provide means whereby two or more persons may ride on the vehicle so that they need not assist in operating the tricycle, but

may use either pedal as a spring foot-rest; third, to provide a brake whose action does not nullify the operation of the guiding-wheel by raising it from the ground, by locating the same on a side of the vehicle opposite to the guiding-wheel fourth, to provide means whereby either driving-wheel may be thrown out of gear from a clutch rigid on the axle, thus permitting the vehicle to turn in'almost its own length; fifth, to provide means for rendering this tricycle especially serviceable to the collection-department of the post-oftice by placing on a light frame-work snap or other hooks, to which mail-bags may be affixed on each or either side of the carrier, permitting 40 more mail to be carried within his sight by reason of the construction of this frame-work than in existing machines; sixth, to provide means whereby either or both driving-wheels may be reversed by the continuous forward 5 motion of the driving-axle through the medium of a conical friction-roller. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of the tricycle. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation through the line X X of Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is an ele- -vation' partly in section, showing the device for reversing the driving-wheels. Fig. 4 is a cross-section through the driving-disk.

Similar letters refer to corresponding parts 5 5 throughout the specification.

A represents the straight tubular axle, on which the propelling-wheels B B are mounted.

O O are the journal-boxes, in which the axle Arevolves. They are apart of the frameW W'.

D D are the driving-disks, of usual construction, on the axle A, and operated by the springtreadles L L by flexible connections P P, which are adj ustable on the treadle-levers L L.

The driving-disk D is rigidly affixed to the I axle A, and its ends afford bearings j for conical friction-rollers k. A concentric cover, 6, having overlapping flanges at each end to guide its movements, is attached by a pin, m, to the flexible connection Band to the upper end of the spring 1, whose lower end is fixed on the frame W. It will thus be understood that when the foot depresses the pedal L and the flexible connection I? the cover '5 of the driving-disk D is rotated forwardly against the action of the spring I, and the frictionrollers 70 go into the narrow parts of the bearings j, and form a binding contact between the cover i and the end a of the disk D. When the spring I exerts its retractile force thecover 8o '5 is rotated backward, the friction-rollers 70 go to the deep portions of the bearings j, and the rotation of the cover 1' does not affect the driving-disk D.

I E E are the hubs of the wheels B B, the outer ends. being countersunk to admit pins H H, whose inner ends form shoulders for the springs I I, and whose outer ends are headed to fit the countersunk portions of the hubs E E,terminating flush with the hubs. Centrally g the hubs are depressed to afford ready lubrication of the axle by means of holes J J. The inner ends of the hubs E E are serrated to engage with clutches E E, rigid on the axle A, thus imparting motion to the wheels. Con 5 centrically mounted on the hubs are caps a a, serving the purpose of excluding dust and of reversing the motion imparted to the wheels, which is done by means of vfrietion-rollers g 9, held in place on rods f f by washers h h, lon- 10o gitudinal movement being given to the said rods by levers b I), having handles 0 c, the ends being pivoted to the rods at e e and fulcrumed at d d to the journal-boxes O O. The tubular frame W serves the double purpose of guiding the rods ff and of affording a hearing. The friction-rollers g g are round at their outer ends and conical at their innerends,the apices of the cones terminatingin theround portions. On the first application of the levers b b the hubs E E are thrown out of gear from the driving-clutchesEE. Thecontinued application brakes the wheels, and the final application reverses the wheels, as the conical rollers g 9 receive forward motion from the clutches E E, which they communicate in a contrary direction to the caps a a, and consequently to the wheels B B.

F F are the heads of the pins H H, and have suitable perforations to insert the projections of a wrench, by which the nuts G G are screwed to and unscrewed from the inner wall of the tubular axle A.

H H are pins inserted in the hollow axle, terminating at one end in shoulders, to which the inner ends of springs I I are attached, and at the other end in heads F F, by means of which either wheel is thrown automatically out of gear from the clutch in turning curves, and engagement of the clutch E is automatically re-established. The outer ends of the springs I I abut against the inner ends of the nuts G G.

K K K are sockets in the frame WV, in which the rods K, supporting seats K, are inserted, and in which they are vertically movable by means of set-screws.

It is obvious from the construction that two or even three persons can ride on the vehicle at the same time without making unusual provision therefor or adding relatively to the weight of the machine, and inasmuch as either driving-disk D will propel the wheels it is plain that it is not necessary to have the passengers assist in operating the vehicle.

L L are the pedals, operating the drivingdisks 1) D by means of flexible connections P P. The pedals are guided and limited in their movement by theframe W and its cross-bar, and are attached at their rear ends to the cross-bar M on the frame It. Aspring, 0, may be coiled around the bar M, whose ends are attached to the pedal-bars to bringvthe pedals back to the normal position and to serve as a spring foot-rest when a passenger is unwilling to operate or assist in operating the machine.

For this purpose the upper portions of the pedals maybe composed of telescoping sections, forming a foot-rest lengthened or contracted at will. \Vhen it is undesirable to coil a spring on the bar M the springs in the driving-disks D D may be made to perform this duty.

Q is the pedal, operating the brake N by means of bar Q, pivoted at Q, to the frame R and at N to the brake-bar N, whose upper end is affixed to the bar M and is influenced by the elasticity of the spring 0. The brake N subserves the double purpose of breaking the vehicle and of affording a support in case the machine tips backward, which is accomplished by reason of its location opposite to the guide-wheel, and the operation of the brake does not tend to lift the guide-wheel U from the ground, as in existing machines, but rather the contrary.

R is the frame-bar of the machine. At its upper end it terminates in a tubular journalbox, S, affording a swivel-bearing to a guiderod, T, operated by handle T, which steers the wheel U by means of a bifurcated barg V, carrying the axle V. Centrally the frame-bar It is suspended from and supported by the frame WIV. The frame-barR terminates rearwardly in a cross-bar M. a

V V indicate the serrated edges of the inner ends of the hubs E E, which mesh with corresponding serrations in the clutches E E. W \V indicate the frame-work, supporting the seat or seats and thejournal-boxes. If desirable, snap or other ho0ks,X, are attached to the bar W, from which ordinary mail-bags may be suspended; and it is obvious that by reason of the simple and novel construction of the frame WV pouches may be carried on each or either side, within sight of the messenger, without disturbing the equilibrium of the machine, which is a great desideratum when it is desired to carry the maximum mail with the minimum expenditure of time and power.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

l. In a tricycle, the straight tubular axle A, in combination with driving-disks D D, pedals L L, flexible connections P P, and springs I I, inside the axle-headed pins H H, and nuts G G, hubs E E, and clutches E E, substantially as set forth.

2. In a tricycle, the frame IV, directly below the axleA,-having three sockets, KK K, thereon, whereby a single machine may be converted into a sociable, without disturbing the normal conditions of the machine, substan tially as set forth.

In a tricycle, the brake N, pivoted to a cross-bar, M, and held in anormal position by spring D, in combination with operating-lever Q, pivoted to the frameR at Q and pedal Q, substantially as set forth.

4. In a tricycle, springs I I, coiled within the axle A, one end bearing against a shoulder of the headed pin H, in combination with nuts Gr Gr, against which the other ends of said springs abut, whereby an automatic variable motion of the driving-wheels is obtained, sub stantially as set forth.

5. In a tricycle, the frame-bar W, directly below the driving-axle A, in combination with hooks X, from which mail-bags or other packages may be suspended within sight of the operator, substantially as set forth.

6. In. a tricycle, the reversing gear com- In testimony that I claim the foregoing as 10 posed of the rod f, having attached on its formy own I affix my signature in presence of two ward end a conical friction-roller, g, whose Witnesses. apex terminates in and continues as a cylin- 5 drical portion, held in place by awasher, h, CHAS. E. HIESTER.

operated by a lever, 11, having handle 0, fulcrnined at d to the journal-box and pivoted at Witnesses:

' e to said rod, in combination with the cap a J. H. ADRIAANS, on the hub E, substantially as set forth. W. H. DE LACY. 

